Army chief's son still detained over drug bust<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A junior Army officer who was arrested by police
\nduring a drug raid in Jakarta is still being detained at the
\nheadquarters of his unit, Special Force (Kopassus), according to
\na police officer who is closely following the case.<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Police, which made the bust, however never
\nofficially confirmed press reports of the arrest of 24-year old
\nSecond Lt. Agus Ishok, who is also the son of Army chief of staff
\nGen. Subagyo.<\/p>\n
\"I don't know... I don't know anything about the case anymore.
\nDon't ask me about it. I am not handling the case,\" Jakarta
\nPolice Chief Maj. Gen. Noegroho Djajoesman told reporters.<\/p>\n
Asked for confirmation that the suspect was being detained at
\nKopassus' headquarters, Noegroho retorted: \"Don't ask me!\"<\/p>\n
A senior police officer however confirmed the report, which
\ncontradicted earlier speculation that Agus had been handed over
\nto the Military Police for questioning.<\/p>\n
\"Yes, he is being detained there. But his fate is unknown,\"
\nsaid the source who requested anonymity.<\/p>\n
\"That boy should not have been escorted to his father's home
\nin the first place. He should have been handed over immediately
\nto the Military Police,\" the officer said.<\/p>\n
\"Elsewhere in the world, if police caught a soldier doing
\ndrugs, they would handle the case. It is only in Indonesia, that
\nwe have the Military Police handling such cases,\" he said with a
\ncynical laugh.<\/p>\n
The penalty for drug trafficking in a civilian court is a
\nmaximum 15 years jail or a fine of up to Rp 200 million
\n(US$26,666), although few judges have had the courage to give the
\nmaximum penalty. It is not immediately known whether such an
\noffense carries a similar penalty in a military court.<\/p>\n
Agus was apprehended during a drug raid at a hotel on Aug. 8
\nby the West Jakarta Police. He and an accomplice were caught in
\npossession of heroin, shabu-shabu and over 6,000 ecstasy pills.<\/p>\n
Agus had given a different name at the time of the arrest but
\nwhen police discovered his real identity during questioning
\nlater, he was immediately escorted to his father's house
\napparently upon Noegroho's orders, according to a police source.<\/p>\n
The press caught wind of the arrest when the initial police
\nreport and information regarding the handover to Agus's father
\nwas leaked.<\/p>\n
In subsequent police reports, however, Agus's name has been
\nexcised, and Nugroho and his staff has since been forced to deny
\nany knowledge of the arrest.<\/p>\n
Lt. Gen. (ret.) Hasnan Habib, former ambassador to the United
\nStates, leads the chorus for a thorough and open investigation of
\nthe case.<\/p>\n
\"The Indonesian Military must dare to take responsibility. It
\nmust explain to the people what the case was all about,\" he told
\nreporters on Wednesday. \"Whatever the consequence of the case,
\nTNI must explain,\" he said.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Togar M.
\nSianipar called on the courts to mete the maximum penalty for
\ndrug traffickers, noting the alarming increase of drug use among
\nthe country's youths.<\/p>\n
\"Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Japan sentence drug
\ntraffickers and dealers to death. Meanwhile, in Indonesia, drug
\ndealers get out of jail within months,\" Togar said. (ylt)<\/p>",
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